Silly me, I thought these mobile internet devices (MID) based around Intel’s new Atom chipset were supposed to be relatively affordable. This Gigabyte M528 with 4.8-inch screen is up for pre-order on an Australian website (Tegatech.com.au) for around $1130 US. It was originally priced at around $1460, but the price got lowered almost immediately after everyone starting shaking their fists in the air. Here’s what your money gets you; an 800MHz Atom processor, Linux, 512MB of RAM, 8GB SSD, 4.8-inch touchscreen at 800×480, USB, microSD slot, GPS, SIM card slot (interesting), Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi. Seems a bit steep for $1130, no? via UMPCPortal → Read More
TweakTown has some more details about MSI’s upcoming Wind notebook, one of the latest in the line of Asus Eee competitors. So far, the specs look pretty good and the relatively large 10-inch screen and 12-inch wide keyboard are welcome additions. → Read More
It’s no secret that Asus wants to get its 8.9-inch lappie to market as quickly as possible and we’re now hearing that the Eee PC 900 will be available in the US on May 12 for $550, according to Wired, which is $50 higher than earlier reports. In order for Asus to get it here by then, it had to forgo using Intel’s new made-for-tiny-laptops Atom processor. But PC World is reporting that an Atom-based version of the Eee PC will be available in June, not long after the release of the non-Atom 900. Details about the Eee model coming in June are scarce except that Asus’ CEO says that it’ll be “the second wave of the Eee PC,” according to PC World. And the Atom is supposed to be an inexpensive yet power-friendly chip, so you might just want to hold off on that Eee PC 900 purchase. Hopefully we’ll have more details about the Atom-based Eee PC before the 900 gets released so that people can make an informed decision about whether or not to spend $550 in May or hold off until June. → Read More
I can’t wait until more and more of these things come out and all of a sudden you go to a baseball game and see everyone sitting in their seats half-sideways with one leg all the way outstretched so they don’t damage the huge phone in their pockets. Ha! Anyway, that dream is coming to Japan in June thanks to Sharp and mobile carrier Willcom. The Intel Atom-based cell phone/pocket computer is called the D4 and is “the first of its kind.” It’s got a 1.33GHz processor, a 40GB hard drive, 1GB of memory, and it runs Windows Vista (slowly). Other features include a QWERTY keyboard, 5-inch 1024×600 slide-up display, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, MicroSD slot, two-megapixel camera, USB port, and TV tuner. → Read More
http://blip.tv/scripts/flash/showplayer.swf?enablejs=true&feedurl=http%3A%2F%2Fengadget%2Eblip%2Etv%2Frss%2Fflash&file=http%3A%2F%2Fblip%2Etv%2Frss%2Fflash%2F815984&brandlink=http%3A%2F%2Fblip%2Etv%2F%3Futm%5Fsource%3Dbrandlink&brandname=blip%2Etv&showplayerpath=http%3A%2F%2Fblip%2Etv%2Fscripts%2Fflash%2Fshowplayer%2Eswf Here’s something we’ll probably never see stateside; it’s a mobile internet device (MID) from Lenovo called the IdeaPad U8. It works on China’s 3G TD-SCDMA network (I have no idea what that means) and it’ll be available with 4-, 6-, or 10-gigabytes worth of storage. It’s apparently got an Atom chipset in it, although the interface looks a little pokey from time to time. I have no idea what it’ll cost or when it’ll be available because I grew up in Minnesota and they didn’t offer Chinese as a language class in school, just French or Spanish. Oh, and some of the weird kids took German. via SlashGear → Read More
Asus is apparently doing something akin to the pee-pee dance while trying to get its next generation of Eee PCs out the door. On the one hand, it wants to release them before companies like HP and Acer release their tiny laptops but on the other hand, it wants to include Intel’s new Atom processors. Problem is, Intel recently announced that the Atom’s not going to be available until June. Digitimes is reporting that Asus may be forgoing the use of the Atom processor in an effort to release the Eee PC 900 this month. → Read More
[photopress:inetbook2.jpg,full,center] These could be photos of Intel’s upcoming Netbook, the corp’s answer to do-good computers like the XO Laptop and the Asus Eee(eeee) PC. There’s conflicting information as to whether it’s powered by Intel’s just-announced Atom processor or a Celeron, which, in turn, leads to questions about its price: $250-$350 using Atom or $400 with the Celeron. The other stats aren’t too bad for such a world-saving computer. There’s 512MB RAM, 40GB hard drive and the normal ports you’d expect. The 9-inch screen is about what you’d expect. → Read More
Word on the street is that HTC (makers of phones like the HTC Touch, the PPC-6xxx series devices, and more!) will be releasing Intel-powered MID devices this year. As you’ll recall from Intel’s recent Atom announcement, Mobile Internet Devices will play a key role in its strategy going forward. → Read More
We mentioned Intel’s new Atom line of procs earier, and there are rumors floating around Bloggerland that Apple will be among its first customers, using the chip in some sort of mobile Internet device. Will it be iPhone 2? Maybe, but we’d expect a smaller, lighter almost-a-MacBook to be the likely product to first see the Atom. And who knows, an iPhone with the Atom could happen. No reason multiple products can’t share the platform. I mean, we’ve been splitting the Atom since the 1940s. Geddit? Geddit!? Apple picks Atom for mobile devices [9-to-5 Mac, with apologies for the puns] → Read More
Intel’s just officially announced its tiniest processor — the Atom, formerly codenamed Silverthorne and Diamondville. The chip will also be available as part of the “Centrino Atom” platform (codenamed Menlow), which will be “the Intel Atom processor, a low-power companion chip with integrated graphics, a wireless radio, and thinner and lighter designs.” → Read More
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